Jerry Brown: No innocent inmates on death row

Jerry Brown came to the Chronicle editorial board where he made a compelling argument as to why two competing tax measures vying for the November ballot should be scrapped so that his measure can stand a better chance of passing. I used the occasion to ask Brown about the death penalty in California. Brown, a former Attorney General, said that there are no innocent inmates on California’s death row.

“It’s working according to the Constitution to the United States, I can tell you that. That requires highly competent counsel and expert witnesses to be hired and all the rest of it. So if you want to talk about the death penalty, you know the history, my father executed 35 people. Since that time, 14 people have been executed. And there’s a certain buildup of responsibilities. The Chief Justice said if you want to make it faster, you’ve got to get more money. I have not chosen to ask for the sums maybe the Chief Justice had in mind because quite frankly, I’m focusing on this.”

“I’m not prepared to talk about that today. I have plenty of time to mull that one over.”

Has Brown considered naming a panel to look at death row and recommend any cases deserving of a commutation?

“I don’t think we need a panel. There’s plenty of lawyers around that if they feel there’s such a case, they’re going to let me know about it.”
And: “As Attorney General, I think the representation was good. I think people have gotten exquisite due process in the state of California. It goes on for 20 or 25 years and to think that they’ve missed anything like they have in some other states, I have not seen any evidence of it. None. I know people say, ‘Oh, there have been all these innocent people,’ Well, I have not seen one name on death row that’s been told to me.”

Brown did say that if he heard any complaints, it was that “the place leaks and I should spend another $450 million to fix it. I decided not to.”

To recap: Brown is a well-known opponent of the death penalty and he says there are no innocent inmates on California’s death row. Remember that the next time you hear otherwise.